Organic Light Pan

In response to a question I received earlier this evening. Even though the moon appeared to be full this evening it was still a Waxing Gibbous with only 95.4% of the moon’s disk illuminated. The full moon will occur Monday July 22nd at 11:15 am PDT. It will rise tomorrow as a “full moon” but ever so slightly past full as the sun is setting, as every true full moon does, in fact it will rise 8 minutes before the sun sets. On Tuesday July 23rd it will rise after sunset by more than 30 minutes at 99.9% illuminated as a Waning Gibbous.

For those concerned about starting Ramadan incorrectly because you started fasting on Wednesday rather than Tuesday based on the Full Moon, a mistake was not made. The month is started on the sighting of the new crescent and not retroactively after the full moon is observed. In fact on July 22nd, here on the west coast of North America and throughout North America, the moon cannot be seen when it is reaches full as it will be day time and the moon will not have risen yet. As of the close of July 21st, we have fasted 12 days. The traditional white nights of the Full moon occur on the 13, 14 and 15th days which will occur on July 22nd, 23rd and 24th, just as they should be.

For your viewing pleasure, here is the full moon as it appeared in the sky above my home near midnight on July 21st. A thin layer of clouds in the sky glowed as the bright moon light filtered through them.

Full Moon and Cloud Glow

Peace.

Good evening all!  Although it was not required or critical to sight the moon this evening, it has become a habit that I just cannot leave.  I did not travel far to find this moon.  Nor did I have to, and neither do you if you are a crescent chaser as well.

Like every other month I go out to see this tiny sliver of light in the sky, when I see it great joy fills my heart and I wear a grin from ear to ear.  It is one of the most remarkable sights in all the world to me.  The moon has been my monthly companion for the last 20 years and it still brings me as much awe and wonder as the first time I ever saw it.

This month the moon ushers in a blessed month of patience, vigilance, fortitude, faith, and spirituality – the month of Ramadan.  It is the Muslim month of fasting in which observant Muslims abstain from food, drink and marital relations from dawn until sunset for the entirety of the month, solely out of obedience to our Loving and Merciful Creator.

So without further a due, here is the harkener of blessings upon blessings.

Ramadan 1434, July 9th, 2013 at 8:43 pm PDT from San Jose, CA

To all my Muslim readers…Ramadan Mubarak!

And Peace to all!

Just a quick note. The new crescent moon for Ramadan 1434 (2013) was not seen here on the west coast of the United States in the San Francisco Bay Area. Being that today, July 8th 2013, is the 29th day of Sha’baan, it is the critical day for looking for the moon.

In fact no positive verifiable sightings were made worldwide today. That being the case, Sha’baan will complete 30 days and Ramadan will commence on Wednesday July 10th, 2013.

Check back tomorrow if you are interested in seeing the new moon of Ramadan, which I plan on photographing tomorrow evening, God willing.

Ramadan Mubarak to all my Muslim readers!